My work was designed to explore the way traditional designs exist in today’s world. Focused on one of the most popular and representative traditional designs - the Blue and White Porcelain, I designed a unique lamp - FRAME IT. Blue and White Porcelain’s beauty comes from its unique patterns and elegant shapes. So I picked up these two features and applied them in my work. As part of my target, I also tried to explore a new relationship between people and the porcelain, which enabled people to engage more in this traditional design. The patterns on the lamp can be changed, people can decide what can be seen on its surface.
Yuwen Chen
Yuwen Chen is a product designer. To him, designing products is not a work or an assignment, it’s a kind of entertainment, a way to gain happiness. He enjoys the moment that ideas come into being in his brain, the process of creating a new work, it’s like growing a tree from a seed and tasting the sweet fruits at last.
Yuwen Chen is also a history lover. To him, history is like a treasure house, traditional designs, arts, antiques are all the resources of inspiration. So he always made products using traditional elements, and at the same time, he is trying to figure out the suitable relationship between tradition and today’s design.
Yuwen Chen is a learner, too. As a designer, he is less experienced, but he always learns. Learn from teachers, learn from classmates, learn from everyone who can inspire him. Designer’s way is a long and hard way, but he doesn’t mind at all. With enthusiasm, joy and a heart seeking knowledge, he is prepared to enjoy the journey on this way.
What is a Blue and White Porcelain?
Here I have a picture of a Blue and White Porcelain. Looking at it, some people may say that it’s a porcelain, while some people think that it’s a kind of container.
As for me, I would say that there are some beautiful blue patterns framed in an elegant shape.
So let’s go back to the former question, what is a Blue and White Porcelain?
Just as the examples I gave, Blue and White Porcelain is a kind of porcelain, a kind of container, it’s completely correct, for so many years, that’s how people define it. But still because of so many years, Blue and White Porcelain transformed from a kind of common porcelain thousands years ago to a traditional design now. Time gives it power, in today’s world, Blue and White Porcelain already have the sedimentation of time. So, is it only porcelain or a container now?
As one of the most popular porcelain, Blue and White Porcelain can be found everywhere around the world, whenever porcelain is mentioned, people think of Blue and White Porcelain. It’s no longer a specific object anymore, it’s now a culture symbol.
So, in today’s world, should this culture symbol be limited by its material and functions?
Can it be used as an element rather than a product?
Can its beauty be used on other products, other designs?
If its form of existence changes, what will happen to the relationship between it and its users?
To answer these questions, I deconstructed Blue and White Porcelain, trying to find possibilities how it can exist in today’s world.
Blue and White Porcelain’s beauty comes from its patterns and shapes, to me, this is what makes it unique, and I use these two features on a lamp.
FRAME IT is a lamp which enables users to have a closer relationship with Blue and White Porcelain’ beauty. The lamp has two conditions, when it turns off, looking from its front, it’s like a 2d frame. Users can put the patterns they like on the platform of the lamp. It’s like creating a small landscape themselves. And the 2d frame can play a role of “focus”. Just like the doors of Classical Chinese Gardens.
When it turns on, the 2d frame will change into a 3d object, now the lamp just looks like a vase, but it contains light rather than flowers. The patterns users place before are now hidden in the lamp, but the shadow can still shine on the surface of the lamp. Depending on different distances to the light, patterns can cause different shadows on lamp’s surface. In this way, users can do what they cannot do on common Blue and White Porcelain - creating the patterns they like, just like what porcelain makers do, thus getting closer to its beauty.
The process of turning on.